Better way to check if a Path is a File or a Direc

Question

I am processing a TreeView of directories and files. A user can select either a file or a directory and then do something with it. This requires me to have a method which performs different actions based on the user's selection.

At the moment I am doing something like this to determine whether the path is a file or a directory:

bool bIsFile = false;
bool bIsDirectory = false;

try
{
    string[] subfolders = Directory.GetDirectories(strFilePath);

    bIsDirectory = true;
    bIsFile = false;
}
catch(System.IO.IOException)
{
    bIsFolder = false;
    bIsFile = true;
}

I cannot help to feel that there is a better way to do this! I was hoping to find a standard .NET method to handle this, but I haven't been able to do so. Does such a method exist, and if not, what is the most straightforward means to determine whether a path is a file or directory?

Answer 1

This was the best I could come up with given the behavior of the Exists and Attributes properties:

using System.IO;

public static class FileSystemInfoExtensions
{
    /// <summary>
    /// Checks whether a FileInfo or DirectoryInfo object is a directory, or intended to be a directory.
    /// </summary>
    /// <param name="fileSystemInfo"></param>
    /// <returns></returns>
    public static bool IsDirectory(this FileSystemInfo fileSystemInfo)
    {
        if (fileSystemInfo == null)
        {
            return false;
        }

        if ((int)fileSystemInfo.Attributes != -1)
        {
            // if attributes are initialized check the directory flag
            return fileSystemInfo.Attributes.HasFlag(FileAttributes.Directory);
        }

        // If we get here the file probably doesn't exist yet.  The best we can do is 
        // try to judge intent.  Because directories can have extensions and files
        // can lack them, we can't rely on filename.
        // 
        // We can reasonably assume that if the path doesn't exist yet and 
        // FileSystemInfo is a DirectoryInfo, a directory is intended.  FileInfo can 
        // make a directory, but it would be a bizarre code path.

        return fileSystemInfo is DirectoryInfo;
    }
}

Here's how it tests out:

    [TestMethod]
    public void IsDirectoryTest()
    {
        // non-existing file, FileAttributes not conclusive, rely on type of FileSystemInfo
        const string nonExistentFile = @"C:\TotallyFakeFile.exe";

        var nonExistentFileDirectoryInfo = new DirectoryInfo(nonExistentFile);
        Assert.IsTrue(nonExistentFileDirectoryInfo.IsDirectory());

        var nonExistentFileFileInfo = new FileInfo(nonExistentFile);
        Assert.IsFalse(nonExistentFileFileInfo.IsDirectory());

        // non-existing directory, FileAttributes not conclusive, rely on type of FileSystemInfo
        const string nonExistentDirectory = @"C:\FakeDirectory";

        var nonExistentDirectoryInfo = new DirectoryInfo(nonExistentDirectory);
        Assert.IsTrue(nonExistentDirectoryInfo.IsDirectory());

        var nonExistentFileInfo = new FileInfo(nonExistentDirectory);
        Assert.IsFalse(nonExistentFileInfo.IsDirectory());

        // Existing, rely on FileAttributes
        const string existingDirectory = @"C:\Windows";

        var existingDirectoryInfo = new DirectoryInfo(existingDirectory);
        Assert.IsTrue(existingDirectoryInfo.IsDirectory());

        var existingDirectoryFileInfo = new FileInfo(existingDirectory);
        Assert.IsTrue(existingDirectoryFileInfo.IsDirectory());

        // Existing, rely on FileAttributes
        const string existingFile = @"C:\Windows\notepad.exe";

        var existingFileDirectoryInfo = new DirectoryInfo(existingFile);
        Assert.IsFalse(existingFileDirectoryInfo.IsDirectory());

        var existingFileFileInfo = new FileInfo(existingFile);
        Assert.IsFalse(existingFileFileInfo.IsDirectory());
    }

Answer 2

I needed this, the posts helped, this gets it down to one line, and if the path isn't a path at all, it just returns and exits the method. It addresses all of the above concerns, doesn't need the trailing slash either.

if (!Directory.Exists(@"C:\folderName")) return;

Answer 3

Maybe for UWP C#

public static async Task<IStorageItem> AsIStorageItemAsync(this string iStorageItemPath)
    {
        if (string.IsNullOrEmpty(iStorageItemPath)) return null;
        IStorageItem storageItem = null;
        try
        {
            storageItem = await StorageFolder.GetFolderFromPathAsync(iStorageItemPath);
            if (storageItem != null) return storageItem;
        } catch { }
        try
        {
            storageItem = await StorageFile.GetFileFromPathAsync(iStorageItemPath);
            if (storageItem != null) return storageItem;
        } catch { }
        return storageItem;
    }

Answer 4

This is using DirectoryInfo to get the attribute

Dim newnode As TreeNode
Dim dirs As New DirectoryInfo(node.FullPath)
For Each dir As DirectoryInfo In dirs.GetDirectories()
    If dir.Attributes = FileAttributes.Directory Then

    Else

    End If
Next

This will work if you trying to get through DirectoryInfo trying to create a TreeView or read a TreeView

Answer 5

If you want to find directories, including those that are marked "hidden" and "system", try this (requires .NET V4):

FileAttributes fa = File.GetAttributes(path);
if(fa.HasFlag(FileAttributes.Directory)) 

Answer 6

soooo late in the game i know, but thought i'd share this anyway. If you are solely working with the paths as strings, figuring this out is easy as pie:

private bool IsFolder(string ThePath)
{
    string BS = Path.DirectorySeparatorChar.ToString();
    return Path.GetDirectoryName(ThePath) == ThePath.TrimEnd(BS.ToCharArray());
}

for example: ThePath == "C:\SomeFolder\File1.txt" would end up being this:

return "C:\SomeFolder" == "C:\SomeFolder\File1.txt" (FALSE)

Another example: ThePath == "C:\SomeFolder\" would end up being this:

return "C:\SomeFolder" == "C:\SomeFolder" (TRUE)

And this would also work without the trailing backslash: ThePath == "C:\SomeFolder" would end up being this:

return "C:\SomeFolder" == "C:\SomeFolder" (TRUE)

Keep in mind here that this only works with the paths themselves, and not the relationship between the path and the "physical disk"... so it can't tell you if the path/file exists or anything like that, but it sure can tell you if the path is a folder or a file...